|
|
joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
|
|
"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam
The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.
Victims never receive this non-existent fortune but are tricked into sending their money to the criminals, who remain anonymous. They hide their real identity and location by using fake names and fake postal addresses as well as communicating via anonymous free email accounts and mobile phones.
Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!
Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.
Click here to report a problem with this page.
Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:
- This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
- The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "abidjan" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: robert <robert10nanakwame@hotmail.fr>
Reply-To: rkwame996@yahoo.com
Date: Wed, 22 Aug 2012 10:37:40 +0100 (BST)
Subject: GOOD DAY MY DEAR
Dear managing director,
My name is Robert Nana Kwame. I am a former group managing director of Ghana Gold Mine Corporation and my last appointment was a party campaign manager to the late president of Ghana, John Evans Atta Mills who died on Tuesday the 24th July 2012 at military hospital in Accra Ghana and was buried on Friday 10th August 2012.
MAY HIS SOUL REST IN PEACE, AMEN.
My reason for writing you this email letter is for you to partner with us for a financial transaction.
Source of fund:
When late John Evans Atta Mills made me his party campaign manager, I run a secret account for him in ECOBANK (The Pan African bank) in Abidjan Ivory Coast, a neighboring country to Ghana.
I am writing you this email letter from Abidjan Ivory Coast where I am presently to claim the balance fund in the account and have discussed with the managing director of the bank who is a co-partner to this deal and he advised that the best way to claim this fund is to transfer to a foreign bank account and that is where you are involved as a foreign partner to provide us your existing bank account or set up a new one to claim the balance fund in the account for our mutual benefit.
I know you may be afraid to work with us since you don’t know or met me before but I am here assuring you that there is no atom of risk involve on this transaction because the fund has nothing to do with the Ghana government in future rather it might bring damn consequences to loose opportunity of this magnitude if we don’t move out the fund fast because it will be forfeit to the bank after sometime if the account is dormant since there is no next of kin on the document with me.
Please, I am urgently waiting for your reply to give you full details of the account balance and way forward.
Thanks and best regards.
Robert Nana Kwame
|
Anti-fraud resources:
